Treatment vehicle for highway guard structures



United States Patent Pierre A. Lamarque North Kingstown, Rhode Island [72] Inventor [21] Appl. No. 763,631 [22] Filed Sept. 30, 1968 [45] Patented Oct. 6, 1970 [73] Assignee One-half to John St. Germain,

North Kingstown, Rhode Island [54] TREATMENT VEHICLE FOR HIGHWAY GUARD 3 16, 2, 72; 239/160, 165; 15/21, 77, 340; 94/(lnquired); 256/(Inquired) [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,026,678 1/1936 Hefner 118/305 2,488,519 11/1949 Andrews et al. 118/2 3,108,301 10/1963 Jones 15/77 OTHER REFERENCES Roads and Streets Magazine, October 1961, Cost-saving Guard Rail Scrubber, pp. 80 and 81.

Primary Examiner-John P. McIntosh Attorney-Salter and Michaelson ABSTRACT: A vehicle is provided for cleaning, painting, or otherwise treating a highway guard structure of the type having an elongated horizontal rail supported on spaced vertical posts. The vehicle'such as a truck moves along the highway parallel to the guard rail, and includes a boom that extends therefrom and that carries a treatment head having a revolving wire brush and an air noule for removing residual dust material from the surface of the guard rail. A plurality of paint-spraying nozzles mounted on the treatment head are directed at the guard rail and the supporting posts and are adapted to spray the guard rail and posts an appropriate color as the truck advances along the highway. The vehicle can operate on either side of the road, and has nozzles mounted pivotally on either side of the head so as to be swingable between operative and nonoperative positions, depending upon which side of the road the vehicle is moving.

Patented Oct. 6, 1970 3,532,070

Sheet 1 013 FIG. I

INVENTOR. PIERRE A. LAMARQUE ATTORNEYS- Patented Oct. 6, 1970 v3,532,070

Sheet 2 013 F l G; 2

INVENTOR. PIERRE A. LAMARQUE pdipFM ATTORNEYS Patented Oct. 6, 1970 3,532,070

Sheet 3 of 3 I60 i //K '62 INVENTOR PIERRE A. LAMARQUE /lb ufw ATTORNEYS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates generally to devices for automatically preparing and painting surfaces and has particular application to a vehicle for continuously cleaning and painting highway guard rail structures and supporting posts thereof. Because of heavy traffic on highways, highway designers have adopted the practice of installing guard rail structures adjacent to the roadway shoulders and in some instances have located the guard rails along the center islands, so as to prevent a vehicle from crossing the median into the path of oncoming traffic. A common design for such highway guard structures employs an elongated horizontal rail having a convoluted shape to give it greater structural rigidity, the rail being supported by a plurality of vertical posts embedded in the ground at spaced intervals alongside the traffic lanes. Both, the horizontal rail and the vertical posts are frequently made of steel, which has a tendency to corrode particularly due to adverse weather conditions and also due to the application of salt to the highway roadbed in the wintertime. Accordingly, the guard structure is normally painted to protect it from corrosion. From time to time the paint coating ages,- cracks and peels, and repainting is then required. In addition, since highway guard structures are exposed, they accumulate quantities of dirt and dust which adhere to the surfaces thereof.

When the time for repainting such guard structures occurs, it is desirable to prepare them for painting by removing the accumulated dirt and dust and the cracked and peeled paint, after which the fresh coat of paint can be applied. It is also desirable to paint the horizontal rail one color, and the vertical supporting posts a second color. I-Ieretofore these operations have been performed manually.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a vehicle which can perform the above tasks automatically and continuously, a principal object being to achieve greater speed and economy in the cleaning and painting of highway guard rail structures. The vehicle rides parallel to the highway guard rail, and a boom extending from the vehicle carries a treatment head thereon. The boom can be adjusted to bring the treatment head into operative relation to the guard structure. The treatment head includes paint-spraying nozzles that are directed at the rail, and further includes paint-spraying nozzles that are directed at the spaced vertical posts. The presence of these posts is sensed, and the post-spraying nozzles are intermittently operated so that paint intended for the posts is not wasted by spraying therebetween.

In most highway guard structures of the kind described, the posts overlie a portion of the rear surface of the horizontal guard rail. It then becomes a problem to paint the posts one color and the rear surface of the horizontal guard rail another color. Therefore an additional object of the present invention is to provide an automatic and continuous cleaning and spray-' ing device which controls the flow of paint so that the rear surface of the horizontal rail and the spaced vertical post can be painted different colors. The post-sensing device of the invention accordingly actuates the post-painting nozzle when it senses the presence of a vertical post, and then turns that nozzle off and actuates the rail-spraying nozzle when it senses the absence ofa post.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide a device which automatically and continuously prepares the surface of the horizontal railing for painting, and does so as an integral part of the operation of the painting equipment. Accordingly, the invention provides a power-driven rotary brush on the treatment head which removes accumulated dirt and loose paint from the convoluted front surface of the rail, with the aid of an air nozzle.

As an additional feature of the invention, two such sets of nozzles are provided, one on either side of the head, so that they can be used whether the vehicle is painting the guard rail on the left or right side of the highway, in the case of those highways which have guard rails along the shoulders as well as along the center median.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the drawings which illustrate the best mode presently contemplated for carrying out the present invention:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a highway guard rail cleaning and painting vehicle in accordance with the present invention; 1

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the treatment head that is carried by the vehicle illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a rear elevational view of the treatment head;

FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the placement of the paint-spraying nozzles of the treatment head at the rear of the highway guard structure; and

FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic view of the placement of the paintspraying nozzles of 'the treatment head at the front of the highway guardstructure.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION As seen in FIG. 1, the device 10 of this invention comprises a vehicle generally indicated at 12 which has a boom 14 extending therefrom, a highway guard structure treatment head, generally indicated at 16 being mounted on the endv of the boom. The treatment head 16 is designed to clean and paint a highway guard structure generally indicated at 18 which comprises an elongated horizontal rail 20 and a plurality of spaced vertical posts 22.

The vehicle 12, which is illustrated somewhat schematically in FIG. 1, includes a conventional truck cabin 24 having a frame 25 and mounted by means of a conventional suspension (not illustrated) upon an undercarriage 26. The vehicle also has headlights 27, a windshield 29, and steering wheel 31. At the front of the vehicle is a platform 28 upon which the boom 14 is movably mounted.

The mounting mechanism for the boom 14 includes a plate 30 spaced from the platform 28 by a shim 32 which enables the plate 30 to be rotated by means of a small motor 34 driven and controlled from inside the vehicle 12, the motor'34 being located below the platform 28 and having a drive shaft that projects upwardly therefrom to engage and rotate the plate 30 to move the boom 14 into the desired position. This permits the treatment head 16 to be swung to the right of the vehicle 12 so as to clean and paint a highway guard structure 18 located at the right hand shoulder of the road as illustrated in FIG. 1, or to be swung so as to extend from the left of the vehicle 12 for cleaning and painting a similar highway guard structure located on the median strip of a highway.

The proximal end 141 of the boom 14 is bent at an oblique angle to the distal end 14-2, and is pivotally secured by means of a pin 36 to a large upstanding lug 38 mounted upon the plate 30. The pivotal connection between the boom 14 and the lug 38 permits the boom to be raised and lowered so as to adjust the height of the treatment head 16 to the height of the horizontal rail 20 of the highway guard structure 18. Such raising and lowering is accomplished by means of an air cylinder 40 driven and controlled from inside the vehicle 12, and having a drive arm 42 which pivotally engages the boom l4.by means of a pivot pin 44. The air cylinder 40 itself is pivotally secured by means of a pin 46 to a small lug 48 mounted upon the plate 30. As the air cylinder 40 extends or retracts its drive arm 42, the boom 14 is raised or lowered to adjust the position of the treatment head 16, and the pivotal connections provided by the pins 44 and 46 allow corresponding changes in the angles formed by the drive arm-42 and the boom 14, and

54. The vertical arm 50 has a channel-shaped cross section, as best seen in FIG. 2, and is welded to a bracket 54 at its lower end. The bracket 54 is also channel-shaped so as to define a pair of spaced ears 56 and 58. The treatment head 16 has a pair of corresponding ears 60 and 62 projecting rearwardly therefrom, and a pivot pin 64 passes through all four ears to secure the treatment head 16 pivotally to the bracket 54.

A spring loading is provided against the rear wall of the treatment head 16, in order to prevent it from pivoting too far downwardly relative to the bracket 54, and also to press it yieldably against the horizontal highway guard rail 20, and for this purpose a pair of upper compression springs 66 and a pair of lower compression springs 68 are provided. The springs 66 and 68 areprevented from buckling by respective guide bolts 70 which pass through the centers of the springs. The bolts 70 also pass through the bracket 54 and are threaded into nuts 72 welded to the rear surface of that bracket. The bolts 70 terminate short of the rear wall 73 of the treatment head 16, whereas the compression springs 66 and 68 protrude beyond the ends of the bolts 70 to exert spring pressure against the treatment head. This permits the treatment head to rock over a small are about the pivot pin 64, against the resilient urging of the springs 66 and 68. Thus when the treatment head 16 is brought into contact with the horizontal rail of the highway guard structure 18, it can yield resiliently to make a small angular position adjustment for optimum engagement with the rail 20. Yet the lower bolts 70 received within the lower compression springs 68 prevent the treatment head 16 from pivoting too far downwardly about the pin 64 when the treatment head is not in engagement with a highway guard rail.

Horizontal adjustment of the treatment head 16 is accomplished by pivoting the vertical arm 50 relative to the boom 14 and about its pivot pin 64. An air cylinder 74 has a connecting rod 76 extending therefrom, and the air cylinder is driven and controlled from inside the vehicle 12. The rod 76 is pivotally connected by means of a pin 78 to the upper end of the vertical arm 50, while the air cylinder 74 itself is pivotally connected by means of a pin 80 to a lug 82 secured to the boom 14. Extending or retracting the connecting rod 76 pivots the arm 50 about the pin 64 to adjust the horizontal position of the treatment head 16, while at the same time the angle between the rod 76 and the arm 50 is adjusted by movement around the pivot pin 78, and the angle between the cylinder 74 and the boom 14 is adjusted by movement around the pin 80.

The treatment head 16 comprises an upper plate 84 and a lower plate 86 between which is journaled a rotary wire brush 88 driven by a motor 90 mounted atop the plate 84. The motor 90 may be either an electric motor electrically connected to the electrical system of the vehicle 12, or it may be an air motor supplied by an air hose connecting with an air compressor located within the vehicle 12.

The horizontal guard rail 20, in order to achieve greater structural rigidity, has the conventional convoluted shape comprising an upper protuberance -l, a .lower protuberance 20-3, and a valley 20-2 therebetween. Accordingly, the wire brush 88 has the shape of a solid of revolution, the crosssectional shape of which complements and matches the front surface of the guard rail 20. In other words, the wire brush 88 has an upper hollow 88-1, a lower hollow 88-3, and a protuberance 88-2 therebetween. The hollow 88-1 matches the protuberance 20-1, the protuberance 88-2 matches the valley 20-2, and the hollow 88-3 matches the protuberance 203. This relationship is maintained as the wire brush 88 rotates continuously, and as the vehicle 12 proceeds along the highway parallel to guard rail 20 in the direction indicated by the arrow 90. v

The rotating wire brush 88 serves to clean accumulated dirt and loose paint from the front surface of the guard rail 20 continuously and automatically as the vehicle 12 proceeds along the road. It is assisted in this job by an air blast nozzle 92 which is situated rearwardly of the wire brush 88, relative to the direction of vehicle advance indicated by the arrow 90. This air blast nozzle 92 is fed by flexible hose 94 leading to the air compressor on the vehicle 12, and a pipe 95 secured to the side plate 104 ofhead 16 by a bracket 102. The air blast serves to scatter the solid dirt and paint particles which are stripped from the front surface of the horizontal rail 20 by the wire brush 88. This prevents the solid particles from being caught in the paint which is immediately thereafter freshly applied to the rail by means of other nozzles on the treatment head 16 as will be described below.

Immediately after the wire brush 88 and air blast nozzle 92 have cleaned the front surface of the horizontal rail 20, it is sprayed with paint by a pair of nozzles 96 and 98 which are pointed at the region of the front surface of the highway guard rail 20 directly behind the air blast nozzle 92 and the wire brush 88, relative to the direction of vehicle advance indicated by the arrow 90. Both the nozzles 96 and 98 communicate with the pipe 99 secured by brackets 101 and 103 to the side plate 104, and with a flexible hose which communicates with a paint sprayer of the conventional type that is carried on board the vehicle 12.

It is understood that if the boom 14 were to be swung over to the opposite side of the vehicle 12 as previously discussed so as to clean and paint a left side guard rail rather than a right side guard rail, the air nozzle 92 and the paint nozzles 96 and 98 would be on the wrong side of the wire brush 88, because the direction of vehicle advance would then be opposite to that indicated by the arrow 90. Accordingly, under these conditions the nozzles 92, 96 and 98 would have their air and paint supplies cut off, and they would be swung out of the way and replaced by corresponding air and paint nozzles on the opposite side of the treatment head 16. For this purpose, side plate 104 of the treatment head 16 is pivotally secured by means of lugs 106 and 108 to the top plate 84 and bottom plate 86 respectively. Accordingly, the side plate 104 can be rotated about a horizontal axis passing through the lugs 106 and 108, to remove the air nozzle 92 and the paint nozzles 96 and 98 from the illustrated operative positions thereof.

On the other side of treatment head 16, as seen in FIG. 2, there is asimilar side plate 110 which is pivoted between the upper plate 84 and the lower plate 86 by means of similar lugs, such as lug 112. The side plate 110 is shown swung to the inoperative position, since an air blast or paint spray is not required in advance of the cleaning operation performed by the wire brush 88. The side plate 110 has an air blast nozzle 112 and pipe 113 mounted thereon by a bracket 114, and a pair of paint spray nozzles 116 and 118 with their pipe 119 mounted thereon by means of brackets, including bracket 120. When the vehicle 12 is to be used for painting a left side guard rail, the side plate 110 is swung into its operative posi tion similar to the position illustrated for the side plate 104, so that the nozzles 112, 116, and 118 are directed at the front surface of the guard rail. The other side plate 104 is then swung away to the inoperative position illustrated for the side plate 110. Then the hose 94 is disconnected from the pipe 95 and connected instead to the pipe 113, while the hose 100 is disconnected from the pipe 99 and connected instead to the pipe 119.

An overcenter spring 122 is connected between a knob 124 on the side plate 104 and a knob 126 on the top plate 84. to hold the side plate 104 securely in either its operative or its inoperative position. A similar overcenter spring 128 is connected between the same knob 126 on the top plate 84 and a knob 130 on the other side plate 110 to serve the same purpose on that side of the treatment head 16. In P16. 2, the overcenter spring 128 is holding the side plate 110 in its inoperative position, while the overcenter spring 122 is holding the side plate 104 in its operative position.

The rear surface of the horizontal guard rail 20 is painted by means ofa spray nozzle 132, as seen in FIGS. 3 and 4, which is supplied with paint by a pipe 134 secured to the top plate 84 I by a bracket 136. Paint comes from a paint sprayer on board rail and inwardly toward the rear surface of the guard rail 20, and terminates in the nozzle 132 so as to spray paint at the rear surface thereof.

The horizontal rail 20 is supported upon a series of spaced vertical posts 22 which are steel l-beams embedded in the ground at intervals. The horizontal rail 20 is welded or otherwise secured by any appropriate means to these posts. As the equipment of this invention automatically cleans and paints the horizontal rail 20, it also paints each of the vertical supporting posts 22 in succession, Ajunction fitting 144 (FIG. 2) atop the plate 84 is supplied with paint by means of a hose, similar to the hose 138 of FIG. 3, which goes from the fitting 144 to paint-spraying equipment on board the vehicle 12. A pipe 146 extends from the junction fitting 144 and is secured to the top plate 84 by means of a bracket 148. The pipe 146 then curves downwardly behind the supporting post 22 of the highway guard structure 16, as best seen in FIG. 3. It terminates in a center nozzle 150 which is directed at the rear surface of each supporting post 22, the center nozzle 150 communicating through pipes 151 and 153 with a pair of side nozzles 152 and 154 which are aimed somewhat upwardly and at the side surfaces of the post 142. As for the front surfaces of the vertical posts 22, the upper portion is seen to be covered by the horizontal rails 20, but the lower portion is sprayed with paint by a nozzle 156 supplied by a pipe 158 depending from a bracket 159 that is located rearwardly of the upper plate 84 on the treatment head 116. The same pipe 158 also branches off to supply a pair of somewhat upwardly aimed side nozzles 160 and 162 (see also FIGS. 4 and 5) which are directed so that they assist nozzles 152 and 154 in spraying the side surfaces of each vertical supporting post 142. Since nozzles 160 and 162 are directed somewhat higher than nozzle 156, and nozzles 152 and 154 are directed somewhat higher than nozzle 150, the net effect of all the nozzles described is to cover the upper and lower portions of the rear and both side surfaces of each supporting post 22, plus the front surface of each supporting post as far up as the lower edge of the horizontal railing 20.

It is evident that for optimum results the vertical post-spraying nozzles 156, 160, 162, 150, 152 and 154 must all be turned on only when the treatment head 16, in the course of its movement along the extended horizontal rail 20, passes one of the vertical supporting posts 22. They must then be turned off when the treatment head is passing between the post 22. In some cases, highway maintenance departments use two different colors for painting the guard rails, one color for the horizontal rail 20, and a separate color for the vertical posts 22. In most instances, the horizontal rail 20 is painted white for maximum reflectivity and visibility, while the vertical supporting posts 22 are painted black. Unless the flow of black paint were shut off at the appropriate times, it would be mixed with the white paint concurrently being sprayed upon the rear surface of the horizontal rail 20 by the nozzle 132, thus producing a grey color.

Accordingly, a postfeeler member 170 is provided and as seen in FIGS. 2 and 3, this is an elongated metal strip having a curved end 170-1 which successively contacts each of the supporting posts 22. The proximal end of the feeler 170 is secured to the lower plate 86 of the treatment head l6 by means of a pivot pin 172. Also secured to the lower plate 86, adjacent to the feeler member 170, is a switch 174 which, has an operating plunger I76 projecting from the switch housing in the direction of the feeler member 170. The plunger 176 is outwardly spring-urged, by the internal mechanism of the switch 174, and, as illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3 the feeler member 170 has been rotated rearwardly by contact with one of the vertical supporting posts 22 so that it has swung into contact with the plunger 176 which has been depressed somewhat into the housing of the switch 174. However, when the vehicle 12 has progressed further in the direction indicated by the arrow 90, the curved end 170-1 will eventually clear the vertical supporting post 22 with which it is shown engaging, and the plunger 176 will then be able to respond to the spring bias thereon by pushing the feeler member 170 out of its way and protruding a maximal distance from the housing of the switch 174.

The switch 174 contains electrical contacts which are wired to conventional controls, such as solenoid valves, that govern the flow of paint to certain ones of the spray nozzles described above. As a result the flow of paint to those nozzles is turned on and off in response to the condition of the switch 174, which is governed by the position of the plunger 176, whichin turn, depends upon the position of the feeler member 170. As the treatment head 16 first approaches one of the vertical supporting posts 22, that post is engaged by the feeler member which swings rearwardly as the vehicle 12 proceeds in the direction of the arrow 90. As the feeler member 170 swings rearwardly it depresses the switch plunger 176, signaling the fact that the treatment head 16 is now adjacent one of the supporting posts 22. At that moment, the moment illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5, the switch 174 responds to the depressed position of the plunger 176 by turning on the flow of paint to all the nozzles 160, 162, 156, 150, 152, and 154 which spray black paint intended only for the vertical supporting posts 22. It also turns off the flow of the white paint to the nozzle 132, in order to prevent that nozzle from spraying white paint upon the rear surface of the upper portion of the vertical supporting post 22 where it overlies the rear surface of the horizontal rail 20. However, the flow of paint to the front surface of the rail 20, via nozzles 96 and 98 or 116 and 118, is not interrupted. After the feeler member clears the particular post with which it is then in contact, the plunger 176 returns to its original position, forcing the feeler member 170 outwardly in so doing. Initial conditions are thus restored, and the cycle is repeated when the feeler member 170 contacts the next succeeding vertical supporting post 22.

Accordingly, it will now be realized that thepresent invention provides a rapid, economical, and continuous method of cleaning and painting highway guard structures, wherein a vehicle travels continuously along the road parallel to the. horizontal guard rail on either the left or the right, and a treatment head on an extended boom engages the guard rail as it goes, cleaning it and painting it, and painting the vertical supporting posts as well. Furthermore, the flow of paint to various surfaces is switched on and off in accordance with whether the treatment head is then passing a vertical supporting post or is passing a space between the vertical supporting posts, so that paint is neither wasted nor sprayed disfiguringly upon the ad jacent landscape. Moreover, different color paints can be used for the horizontal rail and the vertical supporting posts, without undesirably mixing the two.

Since the foregoing description and drawings are merely il-' lustrative, the scope of protection of the invention has. been more broadly stated in the following claims, and these should be liberally interpreted so as to obtain the benefit of all equivalents to which the invention is fairly entitled.

I claim:

1. Equipment for treating highway guard structures having an elongated horizontal rail supported on spaced posts, said device comprising a vehicle adapted to ride parallel to said rail; a boom extending from said vehicle and carrying a treatment head thereon; means for selectively adjusting the position of said boom to bring said treatment head into operative relation to said guard structure; said treatment head including rail-spraying nozzle means positioned thereon to be directed at said rail when said boom position is so adjusted; post-spraying nozzle means positioned thereon to be directed at successive posts when said boom position is so adjusted, and means for sensing said posts to determine the position of said treatment head relative thereto; means on said vehicle for containing a coating material; means responsive to said post sensing means for controlling the flow of said coating material to said post-spraying nozzle means for directing said coating material said rail, wherein said rail-spraying nozzle means includes a first nozzle directed at said one surface of said rail; said control means turning on and off the flow of coating material to said first nozzle in response to said post-sensing means so as to spray coating material through said first nozzle when said treatment head is passing between said posts, and not to spray liquid through said first nozzle when said treatment head is passing one of said posts.

3. Equipment as in claim 2 for treating said highway guard structures, said posts of which do not cover the opposite surface of said rail, wherein said rail-spraying nozzle means includes a second nozzle directed at said opposite surface of said rail; said spraying means being arranged to spray liquid continuously through said second nozzle during operation of said equipment, without regard to the position of said treatment head relative to said posts.

4. Equipment as in claim 1, wherein said treatment head further comprises a brush located in advance of said nozzle means for engaging and brushing a surface of said rail.

5. Equipment as in claim 4, wherein said treatment head further comprises a motor arranged to rotate said brush during operation of said equipment.

6. Equipment as in claim 5 for treating said highway guard structures, said rails of which present a convoluted surface to said brush, wherein said brush has a shape which is a surface of revolution, the cross section of which taken through the axis of revolution has a convoluted profile matching said convoluted rail surface.

7. Equipment as in claim 5, wherein said treatment head further comprises air nozzle means positioned behind said brush relative to the direction of advance of said vehicle, and aimed at the surface of said rail which is engaged by said brush; piping means leading from said air nozzle means to said vehicle, and means on said vehicle for forcing air through said piping means and said air nozzle means to assist said brush in removing solid material from said rail surface.

8. Equipment as in claim 4, wherein said rail-spraying nozzle means comprise a pair of nozzle means positioned on opposite sides of said brush relative to the direction of vehicle travel, and said pair of nozzle means are mounted on said treatment head by. respective swingable mechanisms, whereby to remove either of said nozzle means from its operative position.

9. Equipment as in claim 8, wherein respective over-center spring means connect both said mechanisms to said treatment head whereby to hold said nozzle means in or out of said operative position. 

